Locals strongly oppose public hearing of Ambuja Cements

Visakhapatnam: Local people disrupted Ambuja Cements’ public hearing programme scheduled in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday. A large number of police was deployed to ensure the hassle-free conduct of the public hearing programme. However, the police could not stop the people's protest. The banners on the stage and chairs were torn and thrown out. The police tried to prevent them in vain. A large number of women participated in the agitation.

The protesters expressed anger that the people are already suffering from high pollution levels in the area and a number of diseases. They said that they do not have strength to bear the pollution emitted by Adani's Ambuja Cements. They stated that they are agitating without any involvement of political parties.

Usually, when politicians are at the forefront of any movement, people and activists extend support to them.

But the agitation at Pedagantyada saw people disrupting the public hearing programme without any political support. Later, political leaders had to join due to unavoidable circumstances.

The people of the region are demanding to fill up pending jobs in Gangavaram Port.

Also, the protesters demanded prevention of privatisation of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant. Left parties and public organisations extended their support to the protesters. They raised slogans like ‘go back Adani’ and ‘stop playing with people's lives’. People protested holding placards, banners and donning black ribbons.

Visakhapatnam Regional PCB Office organised a public hearing for the Gangavaram Grinding Cement Mill with a production capacity of four million metric tonnes, at Nadupur High School in Pedagantyada mandal.

However, it could not proceed forward due to the protest. Later, Pedagantyada Tahsildar Amala announced that the public hearing programme was postponed and a revised date will be announced soon.